The popularity of electronic calendaring devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), electronic organizers, or calendar and scheduling software applications, such as Microsoft® Outlook®, run on typical personal computers has increased significantly in recent times. These devices allow a user to maintain a current full contact database, as well as calendar and scheduling information in a convenient and portable format. While many people are making use of these electronic calendaring devices and applications, not everyone has moved from the more conventional paper based calendar system. Further, while many people are users of electronic calendaring devices, many of these same people also maintain a separate paper based calendar in addition to an electronic calendaring device. Maintaining both paper based and electronic calendaring devices so as to keep information up-to-date and in sync on both calendar systems can be a time consuming and not so straightforward undertaking.
While many electronic calendaring devices are available and in wide use, there is no standard format for creating or distributing calendar information that is commonly used by known electronic calendaring devices. In view of this, it is difficult to share calendar information between users of different types of calendaring devices. This makes the task of synchronizing calendars a more complicated task.
Calendar information is generated by many parties or organizations. For example, the local baseball team may generate a calendar setting out the schedule of all games to be played for the season. The local art museum may generate a calendar setting out scheduled shows and exhibits for the year. Additionally, the local elementary school may generate a calendar setting out scheduled events such as school plays, sporting events, distribution of report cards or school holidays for the school year. This calendar information may be distributed in written format embodied on a print medium such as, for example, paper, by each party or organization. Alternatively, this information may be published to a site on the world wide web (WWW) in, for example, hyper-text mark up language (HTML) format or as a downloadable portable document file (.PDF).
In order to incorporate calendar information set out in written format or published in electronic format, a user of an electronic calendaring device must typically manually enter the data into his/her respective electronic calendaring device in order for it to be reflected on her/his personal calendar/schedule. This can be time consuming. Further, errors may be introduced by a user while entering the calendar data into his/her electronic calendaring device.
Thus, a heretofore unaddressed need exists in the industry to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.